1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a suspension mounting structure, and more particularly, to a vehicle rear suspension mounting structure for mounting an upper portion of a rear strut to a vehicle body.
2. Related Art
There has been proposed a rear suspension mounting structure for mounting lower portions of struts each constituted by a coil spring, a shock absorber, etc. To right and left vehicle suspension arms and for mounting upper portions of the struts right above the suspension arms (see, JP-U-7-8164 for instance, which will be hereinafter referred to patent publication 1).
In the rear suspension mounting structure disclosed in patent publication 1, a side member formed into a U-shape in section and having an upper opening extends in the vehicle longitudinal direction, and is curved inward in the vehicle width direction so as not to interfere with the strut fixing part. From the curved portion of the side member, a strut mounting face serving as strut fixing part extends outward in the vehicle width direction, to which an upper portion of the strut is fixed.
In the rear suspension mounting structure disclosed in patent publication 1, the strut mounting face that receives a force input from the strut during vehicle running is constituted by a flat plate having a relatively wide area, making it difficult to ensure the strength and rigidity of the strut mounting face. To ensure the strength and rigidity, the thickness of the flat plate constituting the strut mounting face must be increased, resulting in adverse effects such as increased vehicle weight.